Est. 2019 · small batch · one pair of hands

Beads, bows, and
girlie little things
strung by hand.

I make beaded jewellery, hair clips, phone charms and the sort of small shiny objects you buy for yourself on a Tuesday. Everything is strung, knotted and wrapped at my kitchen table in small runs — usually nine or ten of a thing, then it’s gone.

Maker: Estie Nkosi
Bench: Unit 4, 118 Roodepoort Rd, Brixton, Johannesburg
Hours: Mon–Fri 09:00–17:00 · Sat 10:00–14:00 · Sun closed
Postage: R65 flat, anywhere in SA · free over R600
Reply time: Same day, usually before lunch

No. 0417 · thank you for looking

The shelf

Prices are per piece. If something says last few, it means exactly that — I don’t restring a design once the beads run out.

Beaded jewellery

The Brixton Daisy choker Milk-glass daisies, seed-bead chain, gold-filled clasp R280
Sugar Plum stack Three stretch bracelets, plum and lilac, wear all at once R195
Long Sunday necklace Freshwater pearls, uneven on purpose, 62cm drop R420
Cherry Bomb hoops Tiny glass cherries on gold hoops, 18mm R165
Beaded name bracelet Your name, up to nine letters, pick your two colours R140
The whole arm set Five mismatched bracelets, boxed, my favourite combination R340

Hair & girlie bits

Bow barrette, big Ribbed satin on a French clip, holds thick hair R120
Pearl claw clip Cellulose acetate, hand-set pearls along the spine R150
Scrunchie trio Silk offcuts, no two sets the same — last few R95
Beaded hair pins Set of four, seed beads on steel, for up-dos R110

Charms & small things

Phone charm strap Beaded loop with a lobster clip, fits any case R130
Bag dangle Charm cluster for a tote handle, beads and a tiny bell R145
Beaded keyring Initial bead, six colours, makes a good small gift R85
Little gift box Tissue, ribbon, hand-written card — add to any order R35

Custom colours and lengths are welcome — tell me the outfit and I’ll match it. Custom pieces take about five days.

Made lately

Drag sideways to look through the bench →

A hand holding a beaded bracelet against a plain wall — bracelets Sugar Plum stack, three colourways, all gone

Colourful glass beads sorted into small piles on a table — bench This week’s bead delivery, sorted by hand

A pair of beaded drop earrings on a pale surface — earrings Cherry Bomb hoops, restocked twice this month

A satin ribbon bow hair clip resting on fabric — hair Bow barrettes in four satins, cut on the bias

A small parcel wrapped in tissue paper with ribbon — post Every order leaves like this, tissue and all

Beaded necklaces hanging in a row on a wooden stand — necklaces Sunday pearls, waiting on the stand to be boxed

How this started

I started stringing beads in 2019, mostly to stop myself from buying jewellery I couldn’t afford. The first thing I made was a daisy choker for my sister’s birthday because the one she wanted was sold out everywhere. She wore it to a braai and came home with four orders from her friends. That was the whole business plan, honestly.

Six years later it’s still me at the table. I buy beads in small quantities from two suppliers in Durban and one in Cape Town, which is why colours come and go — when a supplier stops carrying a bead, that design retires. I knot every strand by hand and I don’t glue clasps, because glued clasps fail in a year and I’d rather you kept the thing.

Everything is made in runs of nine or ten. It keeps the work good and it means nothing sits in a warehouse going dull. If you want something in a colour I don’t have, ask anyway — I keep a list of requests and order beads against it every second Friday.

“If it doesn’t make you feel a bit silly and a bit pleased, it isn’t finished yet.”

Good to know

CareKeep beads away from perfume and chlorine; wipe with a dry cloth
RepairsFree for a year, on anything I made — just post it back
Returns14 days on ready-made pieces; custom work is final
WholesaleMinimum 20 pieces, 30% off, four weeks lead time

Order something

Tell me what you’d like and I’ll reply with a total and a payment link. No card details on this page, ever.

Email: hello@estiesbusiness.co.za
WhatsApp: By request — ask in your message
Studio: Unit 4, 118 Roodepoort Rd, Brixton, Johannesburg
Visits: By appointment, Thursdays and Fridays

No. 0417 · end of slip

Beads, bows, and girlie little things strung by hand.